EC-Motors in a Fan Application: A Case Study

Since a few years, Electronically Commutated motors (EC-motors) have gained interest in industry and more specifically in industrial fan applications. The EC-motor has become a serious competitor for induction motor speed controlled applications in the lower power ranges (up to several kW). Currently, EC-motors can be driven by standard voltage source frequency converters and come with better efficiency values compared to induction motors in the same power range. In this chapter, first the efficiency of such EC-motors is studied and lab measurements on commercial machines are performed to identify their potential with respect to energy savings. Efficiency/loss maps are presented and compared to those of speed-controlled induction machines. Next, based on this input, a case study on an industrial small fan application is performed. This techno-economic analysis shows the feasibility with respect to energy savings and also addresses the implementation effort and the barriers to convince the more traditional fan industry in order to consider the use of EC-motors in the near future.